Meditate | Forgiveness
Chelsea Rose Odhner | Monday, June 6, 2011 “The Lord cannot be worshipped except from charity” (Secrets of Heaven 440).
“The Lord… said that we should not forgive our brother or sister up to seven times but up to seventy times seven. This means that we should forgive as often as our brother or sister sins, without limit, or to eternity, which is holy” (Secrets of Heaven 433).
Forgiveness. I think—well, I can only know for myself—that my ego or outer self says, “Yes, forgive others without limit if…” If they repent, say. But I think this passage would have said something about that, inserted some additional clause, if that were the case. I think my role is to forgive, because the Lord is forgiveness and mercy itself. And the part of me that wants to withhold forgiveness until something that serves me has happened, like having the other person change his ways, is not of a heavenly origin. Even though a person changing his ways may be a good thing, my needing it to be so in order to forgive them is selfish and self-serving. Similar to what I’ve heard said of anger; the resentment that results from not forgiving others lives, along with all its negative effects, in the person not forgiving, whereas the other person is forgiven already by the Lord. Good things for me to think about.
Wondering about the inspiration for this article? Look up the New Church, which is based on the theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg.
Reader Comments (1)
I can very much relate to this. It feels like it would be taking away my life to forgive people to eternity. That shows me that I take pleasure in holding things against people, feeling self righteous, remembering where they have wronged me or others, etc. That is hard to give up. The 'delights of insanity.' Perhaps trying to see where partaking of those delights actually harms or imprisons me will make me more willing to let those things go. I'll see about that...